Perhaps I still can't express what I think at the moment, but I'm going to try. At the core of Tim's argument was this basic premise that our current economic model in the West - which developing nations are trying to copy - is flawed. Mainly because it assumes that growth in economic (GDP) terms is the best way to value prosperity, and that there are no limits to growth. These are both complete nonsense - the world does not have infinite resources, so growth must have a limit. Yet we live like this isn't true. We're basically saying - hey, you poor countries, come and be like us! We're going to grow and grow and grow, building more buildings and driving bigger cars and flying more and having more stuff, and you can be like this too. We raise the bar and ask those lower down to try and jump higher and higher.
You can see the effects of this all over the developing world - being rich and famous is the aspiration for many stuck in poverty, to be like the rich West. We continue to base our economy on oil and its products (e.g., petrol and plastic), which is horrendously damaging to the environment, and we don't seem to be willing to take the action needed to change it.
The bottom line for all of this lies with us, I fear. This is the big word of this blog: consumption. We consume so much! In Age of Stupid, the statistic was quoted that if everyone consumed as much as we do in Europe, we'd need 3 planets to sustain the Earth's population. If we were like America, it would be more like 6, and if the population of the Earth grows to 9 billion like it's projected to, then we'd need something like 10! Think about it for a second - 1 bn people in the world are obese, and 1 bn people live on less than a dollar a day. It's crazy! We think it's a right to have a mobile phone, and an iPod, a laptop, a big tv, a car, to fly in planes from Southampton to Newcastle because we don't have time to take the train (and because it's cheaper, which doesn't make it the best choice).
The solution seems simple, but actually isn't. In theory, it's just about redressing the balance - giving more to those who need it, by those who have it voluntarily giving it up. For me this means that we who have much need to be content with less than we have. And in this country, the majority of us have a lot. But even for those who have little by British standards, we have a lot by the world's standards. True, economics means that many in this country struggle to live a decent life, and the problem definitely goes beyond our individual choices to consume less - it's about the systems which we live by, economically, socially, and environmentally.
But the basic premise is still the same. We need to give, and giving is good. In fact, Jesus said that is "better to give than receive". Do we truly believe that? Can we trust God that if we forego the material things of this life, and give generously to those in need, that we will be blessed. We only have to look to the example God gave for us to follow. Here is the mighty King of the Universe, the One who spoke the universe into existence, becoming one of us, sharing in our humanity and sufferings, and also in our joy, giving Himself up for us. God gave His Son for us! He knows what it means to be generous:
"If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him!" Matthew 7:11.
So let's make the hard choices, to consume less, and to consume intelligently. And above all of that, let's be generous - with our time, so that we get to know those around us better, and with our money, so that others can live life in a dignified way. Let's look beyond the consumerist lifestyle sold to us by the media and all these companies trying to get you to buy the next big thing, and let's enjoy the things that make it awesome to be human - friends, family, enjoyment in the little things, the simple things of life.
I know I haven't even done a tiny bit of justice to the ideas I've tried to get across, but if anyone of this gets through, act on it! Make an impact, because changing the way the world thinks and acts takes individual choices by individual people, all acting together.
